With the release of Unversum, cosmic doom band DÖ explores themes of insignificance and cosmic nihilism. We discuss their evolving sound, collaborative songwriting, and creative journey.
1. First
of all, congratulations on the release of Unversum! Could you tell us about the
album’s central concept and how the idea of “There is no I in Unversum” came to
shape the themes of the record?
J’andrömeda:
Thank you! We’re really excited that the album is finally being released. The
journey to this point was a long one, but it was worth it.
‘Unversum’ was
chosen as the album’s title a couple of years ago when Teröid threw out a
phrase “Megative Unversum”. The word “Unversum” in particular resonated with
all of us, and it was an easy and quick decision to make it the album’s title.
It perfectly captures everything the band’s mood and message are about at their
core. It’s about existence and non-existence. Greatness and smallness. Death
and birth. Cosmic nihilism and the embrace of insignificance.
“There is no I
in Unversum” is similar to the meme “There is an I in team, but it’s hidden in
the A-hole.” That phrase expresses the idea that in the grand scheme of things,
the individual has very little significance. Yet rampant selfishness, greed,
and toxic egoism are constantly driving humanity closer to destruction. The
phrase is also featured on our new shirts, in the same way that the long-sleeve
shirt featured the phrase “The power of Cosmos compels me” as a tribute to the
greater forces of nature.
However, we
don’t want to explain all the symbolism and mysticism—we prefer to leave room
for the listener and viewer to discover and interpret things for themselves.
2. Your music has a distinctive blend of doom,
sludge, and cosmic themes. How did the long writing process, especially with
Teröid joining in 2019, affect the evolution of your sound on this album?
Teröid: Since
2019 and after ‘Black Hole Mass’ EP, my equipment, mostly my pedal board, has
changed a lot. It has changed even during the recording process of the
‘Unversum’. I partly get my inspirations, song ideas and vibes by just fiddling
and goofing around with different kinds of sounds, so it has a significant
influence on the writing process. Many years have passed since joining the band
so there’s lots of different kinds of vibes, moods and influences in the
record.
Of course when
I bring my ideas to the guys they put their own vibe and feel into tunes. Many
times the ideas eventually sound very different from what I was hearing in my
head while writing them. For example ‘Nuclear Emperor’ was first like a classic
80’s heavy metal tune, but it didn’t work out too well so we decided to slow it
down and it ended up very sludgy and kind of heavy flowing. But that’s awesome
and one of the magic with playing in the band with the fellows you feel the
chemistry with.
J’andrömeda:
When it comes to using effects, Teröid is phenomenal. In the past, I’ve tried
adding more variation and weirdness to the band’s sound through various bass
effects, but that’s no longer necessary. I’m extremely pleased that I can now
focus on building solid backbones for the songs together with Kristos. In terms
of riffs, Teröid has his own personal style that still follows perfectly the
cosmic path laid by his predecessor, Big Dog. So I believe it’s this new
dynamic between the guitar and bass, and exploring that relationship, that has
given döömer a new direction, without losing its core essence.
3. You’ve mentioned that "Wasted Life
Form" was born during your very first rehearsals with Teröid. How did that
song evolve over time, and how does it reflect the dynamic in the band now?
Kristös: Yes,
that’s true. It was one of the first songs that we started jamming with Teröid
and it came along really easy. One of the reasons that it was so easy for us is
that me and Teröid have a background in another band called Masteroid. We
played together for about 5 years and we kind of became welded really nicely
back then and now when Teröid joined DÖ it just continued in the same way and
J’anrömeda was also easily able to pick up Teröid's vibe.
The song
represents the more stoner rock side of DÖ (of course traditional doom also in
the end) and I think it has been quite the same from the beginning. Not much
has changed. It pretty much came along as it is now on Unversum.
4. "Ode to the Dark Matter" was
written in the studio, which contrasts with some other tracks that took longer
to develop. Could you share more about the writing and recording process of
that track?
Teröid: While
in the studio we were considering an instrumental opening intro track for the
album and it was supposed to be a title track called ‘Unversum’. I had some
riffs but they all ended up being too long for the intro. Then the frustration
reared its ugly head and I just smashed the main riff of the “Ode” out of the
blue. Then the rest of the riffs fitted in like a glove after tweaking them a
little bit with the guys, Ode, our soundman included.
5. What was the most challenging aspect of
creating Unversum, considering that it spanned nearly five years, and what were
some of the most rewarding moments?
Kristös: I
think the most challenging thing was that covid pandemic kind of destroyed our
creativity and made us a little bit lazy. We had clear plans after Black Hole
Mass but all went to shit. And after that it took more power to put together
the pieces and find the creativity again than we expected. It was horrible
because we had used to do things pretty fast and the material used to come
along really quickly and suddenly all stopped.
But after
covid we picked up the pace, finalized the material and finally got to the
studio. The studio and the mixing process were quite fast compared to the song
writing session. And I think one of the most rewarding moments for me was that
our trustee producer, recording and mixing engineer O.D nailed the drum sounds
at once. I was like “fuck yes” because I have had also in the past so hard and
consuming mixing processes with my drum sounds. And one other rewarding moment
was when I got the vinyl in my hand and I dare to say it was a really rewarding
moment for all of us. Finally it was ready and completed and it was in our
hands and it looked and sounded really awesome.
Teröid: I got
difficult health issues after a corona infection. I was constantly tired, foggy
and exhausted for a long time and it still affects me after two years. That
affected all of my doings, not least the playing and composing. Inspiration was
almost gone, but maybe you can hear the bleakness in the album in a good way. I
even had to stop my favorite sport, Thai boxing and that was devastating
itself. Now I’m better but I’m still struggling with some issues and even now I
cannot do heavy sports which sucks. Fuck corona.
6. You’ve mentioned that the album's sound
might make listeners think there are keyboards involved, yet everything was
made using just guitar, bass, and drums. Can you explain the techniques used to
achieve these textures and layers?
Teröid: I have
a shitload of stompboxes and guitar geek stuff. There’s different kinds of
delays, reverbs and modulation pedals chained. There’s also some weird and
obscure pedals used which I’d not even know what to call them… reverse engines
and other sound distorters which sound like your guitar went to black hole and
came back as a Balrog or something. I'm largely an experimental and creative
player rather than technical and I love playing around with those toys and
seeing what happens after what. You know, [with a lunatic voice from the
chamber]: “If I back my wah cocked and set the phaser pulsing quickly and chain
them to a tape replay machine modeler, which makes it sound like a neutered
male choir, and then add some reverse reiteration, what would it sound
like?!?”. There you go – summoning balrogs with choir modeling stompboxes…
On the other
hand, it’s not that crucial in a live situation. It's another realm. Sure I can
produce spacey and psychedelic sounds on stage too - J also makes some crazy
noises with his bass and mouth (K is crazy in other ways) - but the most
important thing is the massive fuzzed out and crushing soundscape that we have
with all the basses and drums put together. No-one cares, and no-one shouldn’t
care, if all the recorded effects aren’t precisely mimicked live.
7. Given that Unversum is designed with the LP
format in mind, how did you approach the sequencing of the tracks to create
that cohesive, black hole-like pull for the listener?
Teröid: I
think the final point was when we were driving back home from the gig and we
listened to all of the songs and decided the order. Sure the vinyl is a
somewhat limiting element, but the songs are not too different in length so it
wasn’t that hard eventually. Of course there’s some excitement in the air when
each individual sees and hears things differently. For example Ode to the Dark
Matter wasn’t going to be in the record in the first place. It was just before
the mastering when we decided to drop one High On Firerish and rocking song off
and replace it with Ode. That’ll be released later on in an EP with another
stonerish leftover tune.
J’andrömeda:
The songs are varied, and we carefully planned the order so that the overall
flow moves from one mood and, in some cases, even one style to another, making
the album something you’d want to listen to as a whole.
8. This album marks the first time you’ve
written lyrics collectively as a band. How did that collaboration work, and how
do you feel it influenced the lyrical themes on the album?
J'andrömeda:
Writing lyrics is the part of songwriting that I enjoy the least. Fortunately,
Teröid is a member of the Ursa Astronomical Association and has a natural
interest in space. So he was really enthusiastic about inspiring me and coming
up with song titles, and even full lyrics. For example, Teröid came up with the
title and lyrical concept for "Sulfur Incense" even before the
composition was written. Once one of the song’s ideas took shape and we felt it
had a bit of an exotic, Kingston Wall-like vibe, the cosmic incense theme fit
to it perfectly. In these cases, all I had to do was to adapt the lyrics to
suit my style, the song arrangements, and DÖ’s overall vibe.
9. You’ve spoken about the Astral Death Cult
ideology influencing the lyrics once again. How do these cosmic themes relate
to the events and personal experiences that shaped Unversum?
J’andrömeda:
Every human being belongs to this cosmic death cult, whether they accept it or
not. We are all subject to such vast cosmic forces that they are beyond
comprehension. Yet, these forces make our existence possible, which is why they
must be respected. They are also unpredictable and could, in theory, wipe us
out in an instant. The Astral Death Cult concept is about honoring and revering
these forces that enable life but can also take it away. It’s also a way to
explore and comment on humanity, religion, wars, and their significance—or
rather, their insignificance.
So, even
though the lyrics address vast, distant topics, they also reflect the moods and
feelings experienced at the time they were written. Some lyrics are more
aggressive and destructive, while others carry the calming influence of space.
For example, the lyrics of “Call of the Supervoid,” written during the
pandemic, reflect feelings of isolation and an escape to somewhere far away,
like the Boötes Void. “Wasted Life Form,” on the other hand, revels in the
thought that at this rate humanity won’t last much longer, and will soon
perish, freeing up space for the planet and the universe.
Writing lyrics
is cathartic because it allows you to scream out your feelings. But at times,
it has been a bit overwhelming when the feeling of smallness has momentarily
taken over.
One major
inspiration for the lyrics is still Carl Sagan’s “Pale Blue Dot” speech, which
we recommend everyone to listen.
10. How do you think your sound has progressed
from previous releases like Black Hole Mass (2020) to Unversum? What new
elements or techniques did you explore this time around?
Teröid: For me
BHM was a jump into the unknown realm.
So I really didn’t know what to expect. Fortunately J and K were really
encouraging for me to trust myself and to do what I felt right and not to think
so much about the earlier stuff. Guys really made me comfortable to create what
comes to me naturally.
If there were
any demons lurking they were my own to fill the big shoes of my predecessor Big
Dog and not to disappoint the fans of older DÖ. That was kind of scary since I
know there's people with DÖ tattoos and stuff. I surely didn’t want to ruin it
and make them laser their tattoos off… I kind of forced myself to create stuff
which didn’t differ too much from the earlier DÖ because I've a very different
style of playing than Big Dog. But I think the results were better than
expected and I discovered a different kind of approach to songwriting for my
part. So with that I think we found our own path to go with J and K. With the
‘Unversum’ we’re still on the same path as what was discovered making the BHM.
Playing gigs has made the path even clearer. It’s liberating to realize that
you can do anything.
To speak more
practically, ‘Unversum’ was partly recorded in the studio and in my home when
BHM was completely recorded in the studio. For ‘Unversum’ we recorded the
drums, bass, vocals and some guitars live in the studio and the rest of the
guitars at my home studio. For the base sound I used my old workhorse Soldano
tube amp with a reactive load box and cab sims. At home I had more time to try
and concentrate more on that space stuff. Our soundman Ode put them all
together nicely. Actually we could publish the parallel unversum remix with all
the omitted stuff - haha.
11. With the world opening up post-COVID, how
excited are you to bring these new tracks to the live stage? What can fans
expect from your upcoming live performances of Unversum?
Kristös: We
are really excited! Fucking bursting. As I mentioned before we were little bit
depressed and in some kind of a loop where we didn’t had the possibility to do
thighs as we had used to do, well in the world no one did, but now when that
depression is gone we are full of energy and ready to fuck shit up! :D
Fans can
expect a really tight package of new material, fierce performance, happy and
eager band, good times and my striptease show (actually that is already a
tradition in our gigs :D)
12. Lastly, with Unversum soon to be released,
what do you hope listeners take away from the album, both musically and
thematically? What kind of journey do you hope it takes them on?
J’andrömeda:
The greatest thing would be if we could momentarily take the listener away from
this reality. We’re all old-school music fans and appreciate well-crafted
albums. So from the musical perspective, we wanted to create an album that
doesn’t become monotonous. Hopefully, this will help listeners escape the
hectic nature of life and the daily grind, even if it’s just for 45 minutes.
Thematically, the most important takeaway is this: know and accept your place in the universe–appreciate the fact that you even exist. And don’t be an asshole.
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